In 2018, ITV broadcast a ten-part series of a professional wrestling show to be broadcast on Saturday Nights.
This was the first time wrestling had been seen on the channel since it was cancelled in 1988, ending an incredibly popular run that made wrestlers like Big Daddy, Giant Haystacks and Kendo Nagasaki household names.
With the popularity of the WWE, and the growth of the BritWres scene in the UK, there was an opportunity to bring British Wrestling back onto mainstream terrestrial television.
After a successful pilot in 2016, a 2018 series was commissioned and broadcast on ITV 1.
It was not good. Ratings dropped throughout the series, despite stars like Grado, Will Ospreay and British Bulldog Jr starring on the show.
It was quietly cancelled later that year, and although there have been talks of a World of Sport Wrestling reboot in 2023, the series was quietly forgotten as a failure.
But what happened to all the wrestlers who appeared on World of Sport Wrestling (2018)?
Grado
After World of Sport ended, the former Heavyweight Champion went back to wrestling on the UK indies, as well as continuing his acting career.
Grado now wrestles intermittently across the UK, while appearing on the BBC Sitcom “Two Doors Down”.
He also made a shock appearance at AEW All In London, coming out with Anthony Ogogo and Paul Wight on the pre-show, attacking Jeff Jarrett and hitting him over the head with a guitar.
Sha Samuels
Sha Samuels signed for the WWE in 2021, joining the NXT UK brand. He wrestled as Ed Harvey, before reverting to his previous moniker.
Sadly, Samuels was released by the WWE in 2022 when NXT UK shut down, and went bakc to wrestle on the UK indie scene.
He can be seen wrestling on a variety of shows, most notably for Rev Pro in England.
Rampage
Also known as Rampage Brown, the English wrestler become the third WOS Champion, defeating Grado on the first episode of the ITV show.
After the show shut down, he wrestled for WWE in the NXT UK brand, although failed to win title gold in the promotion.
He has wrestled sparingly since being released in 2022, mainly for Progress and Rev Pro.
Iestyn Rees
Despite his name, Iestyn Rees is actually an English wrestler and not a Welshman.
After leaving WOS, he wrestled primarily on the UK indie scene for companies like ICW, as well as wrestling in two dark matches for WWE (although he was not signed to the NXT UK brand).
The 40-year-old continues to wrestle regularly, although does not seem set for superstardom in the future.
Adam Maxted
The former Love Island contestant looks to be retired from wrestling, having not wrestled since March of this year.
Adam Maxted wrestled primarily for OTT in Ireland after World of Sport, winning the OTT Tag Team Titles alongside Charlie Sterling.
Nathan Cruz
Since World of Sport (2018) shut down, Nathan Cruz has continued to wrestle all over the UK, in particular as a regular wrestler for Progress in England.
He also won the WAW British Heavyweight Championship.
Davey Boy Smith Jr
The British Bulldog Jr was meant to be a big part of the WWE after leaving World of Sport, but his run in the company ended before it began.
He was rehired by the WWE in 2021, but was fired just months later without making a single appearance on TV.
It was rumored that Davey Boy Smith Jr was set to appear at AEW All In London, but the Canadian failed to appear at Wembley Stadium.
Will Ospreay
The most successful wrestler on the World of Sport Roster is Will Ospreay. The English star went on to sign for NJPW after leaving the show, becoming one of their most popular foreign wrestlers.
He has gone on to become the best wrestler in the world, becoming the first Briton to win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Ospreay also wrestles for AEW occasionally, recently beating Chris Jericho in front of 81,035 fans in Wembley Stadium at AEW All In. He is now a full-time member of the AEW roster, and one of the most popular wrestlers in the world.
Justin Sysum
Despite being the last-ever WOS Champion, Justin Sysum seemed to step away from wrestling following the end of the show.
He hasn’t wrestled since 2019 (according to Cagematch), when he dropped the NGW Championship to Lucas Steel in a match in Hull.
Sysum was one of the few UK stars to speak out about the WWE starting NXT UK and trying to kill Indie Wrestling in the UK.
Joe Hendry
Joe Hendry signed for Impact Wrestling and ROH in recent years, with the singing star making his name in the United States in recent years.
He is a key part of the Impact Wrestling roster, and is one of the most successful wrestlers to come from World of Sport (2018) roster.
The Scot is now in TNA, and is one of the most popular men on the roster. He recently hit the UK charts with his own theme song, showing his incredible rise since World of Sport.
Martin Kirby
Martin Kirby was forced to retire from professional wrestling in 2020, after two decades of wrestling all over the world.
He posted on social media:
Lionheart
Lionheart was one of the most popular wrestlers in the UK, but he sadly took his own life in 2019 after a haunting final Tweet.
He was honored by numerous tributes by various stars and promotions, including Drew McIntyre and The Rock.
Doug Williams
Known as a stalwart of the British wrestling scene, Doug Williams has wrestled everyone on the indie scene, and done it very, very well.
He retired in 2020 after 30 years in the business, leaving behind one of the greatest legacy’s in all of British wrestling.
Crater
Crater was the monstrous-masked wrestler on World of Sport, who was clearly being positioned to be the new “Giant Haystacks” on ITV.
He also wrestled under the name “Cyanide”, but appeared to have retired in 2020 after wrestling his final match against Chris Cohen.
Kip Sabian
After leaving WOS, Kip Sabian signed to All Elite Wrestling, where he still performs to this day.
He married his wife, Penelope Ford, live on AEW Dynamite and had a brief but entertaining team with Miro (Rusev in the WWE).
He suffered a long-term injury in 2021, but since returned to the ring in a team with Butcher, Blade and Bunny. He previously teamed with Jimmy Havoc, although Havoc was fired from AEW due to accusations against him as part of the Speaking Out Movement.
CJ Banks
CJ Banks continues to wrestle on the UK indie scene, although he took a break from the ring between 2020 and 2022.
He won the PCW World Heavyweight Championship in 2020, the last major title of his career so far.
Gabe Kidd
Gabriel Kidd is currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling, where he trained in their dojo before becoming a full-time member of the roster.
He is a part of the Bullet Club faction, and wrestles with Alex Coughlin as the War Dogs.
